


Fire In The Blackberry Fields

by AuroraShard



Series: FYeah Clint/Nat/Laura Mini Prompt-athon 2020 [8]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: (A couple of cuss words), Explicit Language, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Multi, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:54:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23744137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuroraShard/pseuds/AuroraShard
Summary: Clint watches the news as the Winter Soldier appears on the freeway and as the Insight carriers go down. Natasha doesn't call.For the FYeahClintNatLaura tumblr mini promptathon, Prompt 11 via sbwomenofmarvel: “breaking news of CAWS events. Clint can see that nats been shot. Nat doesn’t call, or text, or in anyway shape or form contact the farm. Until one day she stumbles through the door. Before Nat on Capital Hill. GSW, h/c”.
Relationships: Clint Barton/Laura Barton/Natasha Romanov
Series: FYeah Clint/Nat/Laura Mini Prompt-athon 2020 [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1689340
Comments: 2
Kudos: 22





	Fire In The Blackberry Fields

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SBWomenofMarvel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SBWomenofMarvel/gifts).



> Title from The National's "Little Faith".
> 
> "I set fire to the blackberry fields,  
> Make us laugh,  
> Or nothing will,  
> I set a fire just to see what it killed."

Clint sat on the edge of the sofa, one phone against his ear, two on his table, a laptop next to them, his television on, and a tablet propped onto his knee. His comms channel was full of chatter, and it played in the background. He was reeling; his whole employing organization, all of his contacts, everything would need to be vetted. Much of it would need to be burned. He had already destroyed two burner phones, and was waiting to burn a third. His computer was downloading and scanning the datadump, courtesy of its built in Stark tech. The news was playing on a loop, and he was pinging on all of his immediate contacts for more information. Laura pressed a kiss to his shoulder as she came over, and he grunted. She grimaced.

“Sarah is gonna come by in an hour to get the kids. She’s worried. She’s worried about you and all of us getting caught up in all this.” Clint nods.

“I’m sorry. I never…” He scrubs a hand over his face. “Never imagined this. HYDRA, coming back. It’s.  _ Fuck. _ And I still haven’t heard from Nat. I can only hope she went dark. But I saw the footage from DC. It looks like she got hit. Comms are a damn mess right now. Nobody has a clear answer.” He says. Laura leans to pull him close as he texts out another message. His laptop pings and he glances at it. He grimaces at it, tapping a few keys.

“I’m clearing out snakes left and right. They really got us good, Laura. I don’t know what we’re gonna do after this. I really don’t.” he says softly. He looks up as the kids come down the stairs, holding their go bags and backpacks. He smiles as best he can, but he knows it doesn't reach his eyes. Cooper clutches young Lila’s hand, and he looks so damn determined to be strong that it breaks Clint's heart in two. 

They set their bags by the door, and Clint hurts even more to see their favorite stuffed animals sticking out of their bags. He shuffles his electronics, darkening their screens so they won't see the videos. He beckons them over, draws them into a hug. 

"There's been some big stuff at work. It turns out that a lot of bad people were secretly working in SHIELD. Momma is with Captain America helping keep everyone safe in D.C. I'm not sure when she can come home, or if I'll have to go help. I don't want you guys to get caught up in this. That's why I want you guys to stay with Aunt Sarah for a bit. I know it's scary, and you guys are being so, so brave." He says as they press against him.

"Is momma gonna be okay?" Lila asks.

"Mommy is very good at her job. I can't guarantee she will be okay, but I think she will be. She also has Steve to help keep her safe. They'll look after each other." 

"I want to stay and help, dad." Cooper says fiercely. Clint hugs him tighter.

"I'm glad you want to help, Cooper. I really am. But there's not much even I can do right now. You can help by staying safe. I don't want to have to worry about you guys if I have to go help Momma. And some people are really mad about what happened, and I don't want you guys getting hurt if they want to try and hurt me." He says, drawing back to meet his gaze. Cooper nods reluctantly. 

"It's going to work out, guys. I just don't know how long this is all going to last. I want to make sure you guys are safe, okay? I'll call whenever I can. You can show Aunt Sarah the books you bought the other day. I'm sure she'd love to hear all about them." He said, smiling. Lila and Cooper nodded. His computer beeped and he turned to glance at it.

"Why don't we let Dad get back to work, and you guys can help me make dinner." Laura says, and the kids nod, giving Clint a final hug before heading to the kitchen. Clint watches them leave before he pops open the laptop again, typing away. His list of clear contacts was getting shorter, and his list of burned contacts was getting longer. 

He bites down on the anger roiling in his chest. He hasn’t felt like this since he first read the files on the Red Room, read the reports from Peggy Carter herself detailing what horrors she saw. He closes his eyes, taking deep breaths in the hope of quelling it for now. He can't give in, not yet. Not with the kids here. He longs to head outside, fire off arrows at the targets until his head clears. But he can't. He has work to do. 

He texts the team again, hoping for a response. He is uploading his compiled list directly to their servers, so that they could all access it. He has to assume that at least one of them was running the same numbers. They would need to manually review it later, but now was not the time. He watches lists of his coworker’s names scroll by, outlined in green, red, and yellow. It stung, seeing so many familiar names. It hurt even more when he realizes that this was only those employees still alive. His filter was disregarding any who had passed. He watches it for another moment before he freezes, pausing the feed. There, in nondescript green, was Phil’s name. He inhales sharply, calling out,

“Laura, Phil’s alive.” He shakes his head, typing out messages not only to the Avengers group, but to Fury and Phil as well, demanding answers.

“What?!” She says, incredulous, coming to look over his shoulder. She shakes her head. “Oh my god.” He grimaces. 

“I emailed him and Fury both asking for answers.” he says coldly, and Laura rests her hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sure they had their reasons. Although, whether they were good or not will depend.” She says. She rests her arm across his shoulder, squeezing in an approximation of a hug. He gives her a sad smile, and starts the list back up again. Laura heads back to the kitchen, and he vaguely registers her talking quietly to the kids. He glances over and watches them for a moment. He has half a mind to send her away with the kids, but he’s not sure she will agree to go. The thought of being alone makes him worry about giving in to the anger he knows is simmering just beneath the surface. And he doesn’t know if he is strong enough to handle all of this on his own. 

The list scrolls on, and he checks the other compilation program. It is compiling information contained about him and Natasha, so that he could know what was now becoming public knowledge. He knew that the farmhouse and his family were off records. He could count on one hand everyone who knew about them. And they had, thankfully, all come away clean from the list. Their names were the first he had run. He texts Natasha again.

The next half hour passes in a blur, and Clint startles as Laura comes over to tell him that dinner was ready. He shakes his head, setting aside his laptop, tablet, and two of his phones. He turns off the TV, long-forgotten, and takes his last phone with him to the table. He tries to keep up conversation as they eat, but he knows he doesn’t succeed. The proximity alarm beeps, and the doorbell rings as they finish. Clint checks the alarms and Laura heads to the door, greeting her sister with a big hug. They whisper at the door for a minute, and Clint helps the kids clean the table to give them some privacy. 

Sarah joins them in the kitchen a minute later, and she helps wipe the table down while Laura sets the leftovers in the fridge. The kids scamper upstairs to brush their teeth and get ready to leave, and Clint finds himself staring up the stairs after them. Laura pulls him into a hug, and he sags against her.

“I wish they didn’t have to go.” he whispers. She hums against him. “But I couldn’t live with myself if they got hurt. Have half a mind to send you with them.” She hums again, drawing back to look at him.

“They will be okay. You need someone here with you right now. This is a lot, and you don’t need to shoulder this alone. I won’t let you shoulder this alone.” She says, pressing a kiss to his temple. Sarah graciously pretends not to see, making sure their dishwasher is perfectly loaded. 

“Thank you.” He whispers. She hugs him again.

“Of course. I love you.” She says. “I’m gonna make sure the kids are all set.” She ducks upstairs, and Clint turns to Sarah.

“Thank you. For everything. It’s… It’s gonna be rough these next few days. I don’t want the kids to worry. It means a lot for you to come help us out like this.” She smiles back, offering him a hug. He takes it, smiling.

“Of course. Y’all are family, it’s the least I can do. I’m glad I could get here to help.” She says, looking him up and down. “Make sure you take care of yourself, too. You won’t do anyone any good if you run yourself ragged, Clint.” Clint smiles ruefully.

“I’ll do my best. And if you guys need anything, just call. I’ll try to call and say hi when I can. But I have a bad feeling about all this. I may need to go dark. But Laura will likely be able to keep calling. You still have the secure phone I gave you?” She nodded.

“I could use a refresher in it, if you could.” She said, pulling a phone from her pocket. They sit at the table, and Clint walks her through the secure comms programs. 

“The kids know how to do this, too, so they can help if need be. And, I’m gonna keep saying it, thank you. I know this is… not a usual vacation.” He says. She smiles softly at him, resting her hand on his.

“Like I said, you’re family. Anything I can do, I’ll do. You just stay safe.” She looks up as the kids come down the stairs, Laura trailing behind. “You guys all set? Jack is excited to show you around the new house, and Kevin can’t wait to show you his new treehouse. You guys are gonna love it.” She says, smiling brightly. The kids perk up at the mention of a treehouse, but Cooper turns to Clint.

“Don’t forget to call, dad. Let us know when Momma’s coming home.” He says, shouldering his backpack. The fiery look is back in his eyes. Clint nods.

“Of course. As soon as I know, I’ll call. Right now we’re just waiting to see what happens. She may need to stay and help. Everything is still really unclear.” he says, addressing Lila, too. He kneels in front of them, and Lila comes over to hug him. He blinks back tears as he holds her close.

“We’re going to be okay. Just like always. But you guys need to be patient, and be good for Aunt Sarah, okay? Use your manners and have her call if you need anything. I’m gonna miss you guys.” Clint says, and Cooper and Laura join in the hug. 

“We’ll keep in touch. I’ll try to call for storytime, but you guys have your new books to read. And I’m sure you and Kevin can share books, too. Just like dad said, be good, okay?” She kisses Cooper and Lila, and helps them gather their bags. Laura pulls Sarah into a hug, giving her a squeeze.

“And thank you again, Sarah, we really appreciate it. Let me grab some snacks, and I’ll help you get these guys to the car.” Laura went to the kitchen while Sarah pulled Clint in for a hug.

“Remember, look out for yourself. Call if you need anything. We may just be regular people, but we can still help.” She says with a wink. Clint laughs. 

“Most days I’m just a regular person, too.” He says, smiling. Laura comes back with a bag of snacks, handing it to Lila.

“Alright, guys, let’s get you settled.” She says, leading them outside. Clint smiles and waves, coming to stand in the door. He waves and signs  _ I love you _ until the car is out of sight. 

**Author's Note:**

> More to come. Thanks for reading! <3


End file.
